Pepperell Selectmen Adopt Warrant Policy, Formalize Emergency Shelter Agreement

PEPPERELL — November 13, 2017 — Pepperell Selectmen adopted a warrant-signing policy 2-1 and unanimously authorized an emergency shelter memorandum of understanding at their November 13 meeting. The warrant policy passed over the objection of one board member, identified as Roland, who said he would not sign warrants containing items he considered questionable, pointing specifically to mileage reimbursements he believes the Town Administrator is claiming from an incorrect home address. Fellow members countered that Roland's concerns were legitimate to raise but not a basis for withholding signatures from entire warrants. "We can't hold other people hostage because of one little item," one member said. On the shelter front, the board authorized the Town Administrator to finalize a memorandum of understanding with the school system, formalizing a long-standing verbal arrangement for use of a school building as an overnight emergency shelter — a step the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency had recommended since June. The board also announced a vacancy on the Pepperell Housing Authority after Chairperson Janice Shattuck resigned upon moving out of town; applications are due by noon November 30.